News You May Have Missed June 22, 2023 Child Abuse.  I don’t care what adults do as long as they’re not infringing on the liberties of others – but LEAVE the kids alone!  Four Children Rescued From Drag, Drugs and Sex Party in Squalid Boston Apartment.    I honestly did not know a person could pack so much stupid into 8 seconds:  Senator Schumer, Pistol Braces, and Machineguns.   Adam Schiff, Republicans, and Censure.  Been seeing a lot of people on social media yelling the Republican leadership sold conservatives out by only censuring Schiff and are demanding Schiff be thrown out of congress and charged with felony criminal Conduct.  My reaction?  What the hell? The Constitution Art. I, Sec. 5 only allows the Senate and House of Representative to expel its members and establish their rules- within broad limits – and nothing more.  The Senate and the House can only expel a member upon a two-thirds majority vote.  The Republicans hold only 218 of the 435 seats in the House – far below the 288 required to expel.  Therefore, the only option was to censure him under House rules, which they did. As for charging Schiff with a felony, for what?  Lying?  Lying and nothing more, just like “hate speech” is protected speech under the First Amendment.  (see United States v. Alvarez (2012)(lying without more is protected speech); Matal v. Tam, (2017)(hate speech is protected speech). Look, I get it – I think Schiff is a loathsome person, but nothing he did was criminal and there isn’t enough support in the House to expel him.  So, censure is the most the House could do.  We must demand all of our officials – elected and appointed – follow the Constitution in all cases, not just in cases we agree with.  That is what the House did in this case.   Republicans see the Democrats’ AOC and raise them a Luna: Rep. Jamie Raskin (D) “calls the party of Lincoln ‘the party of Luna and her Luna followers.’” One day I hope to hone my rhetorical skills to the level of those serving in Congress…   I’ve noticed many (most?) in the LBG community are not only moving away from, but also condemning the TG+ community for their actions, good on them.  The TG+ community’s creation of the LGBTQ+ label is harming the LGB community.  Unfairly, many are now viewing Gays, Lesbians, and Bi’s as one with the Trans plus community.  As a result, the acceptance of the LGB community as just Americans who happen to prefer same sex relationships is starting to slide.  “Pollsters with Gallup found 64 percent of individuals surveyed find gay and lesbian relations to be ‘morally acceptable.’ Just a year ago, the poll found 71 percent. The 7-percentage-point decline marked one of the sharpest shifts in public opinion recorded this year.”  It is still significantly higher than the 38% who found it morally acceptable in 2002, but it is a significant decline and a worrying sign.  I think it is past time, and extremely important, that people understand there is a huge difference between the LGB and TQ+ communities.   And the insanity continues: Climate impact of shipping under growing scrutiny ahead of key meeting.  Let’s just assume for a moment that man made climate change is occurring, I’m not convinced it is, but let’s just assume.  There is absolutely nothing that can be done unless Mexico, China, Russia, India, South America, and Africa all climb aboard that ‘stop the climate change train.’  They have not and will not.  So why is the west rushing to destroy our economies for something that cannot be obtained?   21st Century Crime: If you’re going to get into a high speed chase with cops, you should prolly put your pants on first…‘I am butt naked!’ is not what the cops are going to want to hear when they finally force you to stop.   For the Aviation nerds, there’s a good article on three NASA experimental planes.  First, the X-57 is experimenting with electrically powered flight, which is exciting but with today’s technology not very feasible, least if you want range and payload.  Not surprising. this project is behind schedule and over budget.  Second, is the X-59, which is attempting to make the “sonic boom” quieter.  “Sonic booms are  caused when a plane exceeds the speed of sound (Mach). Here’s a good article that explains Mach speeds and sonic booms in simple terms, ok, simple(ish) terms. Seems they may be onto something here, alas, the big drawback to going Mach is the amount of fuel burned.  Finally, there’s the X-66A exploring more fuel-efficient passenger aircraft.  The design concepts are cool. Share this post: on Twitter